hapa | hale

sytycd x hi - take two

the new season of so you think you can dance is in full swing and for the second year in a row hawaii is well represented with kailua dancer kuponohi'iwoi aweau. last night the kamehameha alum and his partner ashley performed a delightfully quirky choreography featuring two dancing crash test dummies.

yes, crash test dummies. gotta love wade robson.

we'll find out tonight if the islands lit up enough phone lines to keep kupono in for another round.

p.s. click over to the star-bulletin which reveals kupono's connection to season 4 favorite mark kanemura.

hawaiian hotel gets rock'd

. . . hawaiian hotel . . .

with tourism in a slump, one can only suspect the peeps over at the hvcb are none too pleased about an snl skit featuring the rock, er, dwayne johnson who offered up quite the giggle this weekend.

definitely for locals only.

ko'olau - a true story of kaua'i

the lovely woodblock prints by big island artist caren loebel-fried are one of my favorite things so you can imagine my excitement upon discovering that a stage production in nyc featuring her artwork made its debut last week. the story of ko'olau is being told through japanese-style puppetry created by ny-based local boy tom lee (who is also directing the show) set against projected backdrops based on caren's woodblocks.

this traditional storytelling style combines with live shadow animation and video projections to tell the story of kaluaiko'olau, a 19th century paniolo on kaua'i who resisted being deported to a leper colony and separated from his family after contracting the disease. together they fled to a remote valley where the family lived until the death of ko'olau and his son.

after the ordeal, ko'olau's wife pi'ilani recounted the family's struggles and it is her dramatic tale of love and 'ohana that the production is based on.

since most of us can't make the show, click over to the gallery to take a fascinating peek at the puppets and production design. performance details below for those lucky readers who call new york home:

• show dates: now to sun, oct 5th
• show times: fri/sat - 10p & sun - 5:30p
• where: la mama experimental theatre club, nyc
• tix: $18

let's hope ko'olau makes it way west and across the pacific one day!

p.s. prints of caren's work are available over in her etsy shop.

so you think you can dance

sorry to disappoint but this is not a dance off challenge from me to you. consider this a little reader alert that hawaii will be well represented on this season's so you think you can dance, aka my guilty pleasure show of summertime. much to my delight, my cousins & i will spend another summer sending dance critiques and contestant picks back and forth across the pacific until the winner is crowned and, happily, we now have a local contender to cheer on!

[a vicarious sytycd-related thrill came compliments of one cousin who had a close encounter with contemporary choreographer mia michaels while visiting las vegas last year. the sighting at mandalay bay excited her so much that, as the story goes, my cousin shrieked "MIA MICHAELS!!!" loudly enough to startle la michaels who promptly gave her a quick wave to acknowledge this exuberant expression of fan girl love before dashing off to safety. fortunately, that one simple act satisfied my cousin enough to extinguish her devious plan to infiltrate the auditions, take the stage, and "dance" for the world.]

anyhoo, the hawaii voting block will certainly be out in full force dialing & texting away to support oahu boy mark kanemura who was already a favorite (before his sister revealed the hawaii connection on social wahines) after pulling off a hilarious interpretation of queen's "bohemian rhapsody" during his audition.

the top 20 start dancing their little hearts out tonight so tune in and go mark!

maui film festival 2008

one way to go behind-the-scenes during this summer's maui film festival is to sign-up as a volunteer. each 4-hour shift will score you two $10 festival passes plus one wednesday night movie pass good for a screening at the maui arts & cultural center.

you must be at least 16 years old to volunteer and need to register online to view the open volunteer slots. there are also a few paid positions for those who want to have a go as a filmmaker liason, p.a., or work the box office. the festival coordinator for more details.

by the way, festival passes just went on sale and, while this year's slate has yet to be finalized, star gazing be it of the celestial or celebrity kind is definitely on the schedule (past attendees have included everyone from his holiness the dalai lama to jake gyllenhaal).

• festival dates: wed, jun 11th - sun, jun 15th

lost in translation

with the writers strike lingering on and on, your favorite tv shows have certainly been pulled off the air by now and replaced by an infinite number of reality programs. on the bright side, the craft of storytelling will once again capture viewers' imaginations with tonight's season premiere of lost! if you need to play catch up or refresh your memory, there are quite a few options floating around online, but the 8:15 recap is by far the most time efficient (and amusing) way to go.

of course, only 8 episodes of the 16 ordered by the network are in the can so, unless the strike ends soon, consider yourself warned that a most unwelcome cliffhanger may be on the horizon sooner than expected.

hawaii international film festival for free!

oh well, it doesn't look like i'll be home for the hawaii international film festival this year, however supercw is trying to spread the word that hiff organizers desperately need volunteer drivers to shuttle vips around town. if you can commit to a four hour shift, this is your chance to peek behind the scenes and potentially meet a few up and coming filmmakers.

film fan bonus: each shift you sign up for scores you a voucher to take in a screening of one of the many indie/foreign entrants in this year's festival!

more details and other volunteer opportunites are posted here.

hiff kicks off this thu, oct 18th so do click over to the online box office for the scoop on the 2007 festival schedule (eraserhead, anyone?).

i heart sawyer

if anyone else is experiencing withdrawal tonight in the midst of a lost-less premiere week, console yourself with this clever notecard set spotted on etsy which captures fans' angst at waiting until 2008 to find out what the heck happened to locke and charlie (said with claire's australian accent).

'ulalena

that the stage show 'ulalena is brand new to me just shows you how long it has been since my last visit to maui. the theatrical spectacle has been described as a mash up of cirque du soleil (one of the executive producers brought mystère to the world) meets the mythology and history of hawaii and her people.

say no more. if 'ulalena is half as magical as mystère it will be well worth the price of admission. take a peek at a few reviews (here and here) for the professional perspective of those who are not easily awed by acrobatics and colorful stage tricks.

details:

• where: maui theatre
• when: tue - sat @ 6:30pm
• tix: $49.50 - $69.50

heart of the sea

we spend a lot of time out at makaha when we're home and a friend always shares the story of when he met rell sunn (aka the queen of makaha) at the beach. a few years ago, he raved about a documentary on rell called heart of the sea after it aired on independent lens on pbs. the film racked up a number of awards when it was released for its poignant take on rell's life and is a lesson in living your life with grace and how truly embodying the aloha spirit is good not only for yourself but for your community too.

unfortunately, the film is not currently on the pbs schedule (but you should still check out il which is one of my favorite programs on tv) and nowhere to be found at netflix, however the hawaii state library happens to have a vhs copy so you can put your library card to work if you still own a vcr.

dvds can be picked up at women make movies which also has a trailer posted on their website.

fyi - rell's family has set up a non-profit which keeps the rell sunn menehune surf contest going and which also supports breast cancer research in honor of rell. click here to learn how you can help.

lost on stage

a few members from the cast of lost are hitting the stage next weekend to benefit the honolulu theatre for youth. barring any scheduling conflicts, matthew fox, jorge garcia, daniel dae kim, terry o'quinn, henry ian cusick, michael emerson, elizabeth mitchell & chris soldvilla will perform selected readings from the theatre's upcoming 2007-2008 season.

the ticket prices may sound a tad pricey however just keep the following in mind when you phone in your order:

one - your dollars are helping to fund hty programs (a very good thing)
two - the benefit will include a reception so you just may get a chance to rub shoulders with some of the cast members

details:

• when: sun, mar 4th @ 4:30pm
• where: tenney theatre @ saint andrew's cathedral
• tix: $100, $200 & $300
• tel: 808.457.4263

get lost

in honor of lost going back on the air tonight, i thought other fans of the show may want to check out the lost virtual tour which maps out all the filming locations around oahu. we always have fun trying to identify the spots used whenever the production goes on location and the website is a nice resource to hit when you're stumped (ex: kate's iowa car chase in "born to run" was really shot at pearlridge).

kudos to the location scouts & production designer for being so imaginative & resourceful when the script calls for them to find and then transform someplace we all know into one of the many lost worlds featured on the show.

and if you really want to dig into the many layers of the show be sure to click over to the transmission, hawaii's very own lost podcast.

no. 10 - honolulu theatre for youth

going to a performance of the honolulu theatre for youth was one of the highlights of growing up in hawaii. it's magical to see stories brought to life on the stage and the hty, the only professional non-profit theatre company in the islands, has exposed millions of kids to the dramatic arts since they were established 51 years ago.

even though their home stage is on oahu, every year the company takes their act on tour around the neighbor islands so kids all over hawaii have a chance to see productions like christmas talk story or tales of old hawaii in person. the hty also holds drama workshops for aspiring thespians as well as for the teachers who inspire them in the classroom.

click here to learn how you can make a difference!

hawaii international film festival

tickets for the hawaii international film festival (oct 19th-29th) go on sale to the general public today! with 254 films being screened throughout the islands, it shouldn't be hard to find something to lure you to the movie theater. the festival has even created its first ever limited edition aloha shirt to celebrate.

opening night features a peek at alejandro innarritu's (amores perros, 21 grams) babel before its stateside release. the trailer looks intriguing and i'm sure many will flock to the hawaii theater simply to watch pretty boy pitt on the big screen (gael garcia bernal is reason enough for me).

highlights include a talk with the cast & crew from lost, an evening with actor ken watanabe (featuring a screening of the last samurai) and, for film geeks, a q+a session with director kevin smith. also, if you prefer films with more of a focus on the pacific islands and its people then you will definitely want to make time for the hawaiinuiakea film festival at uh.

you can check out trailers on the hiff website or, even better, oceanic digital cable subscribers can tune in to the film festival's video on demand channel (no. 680).

• oct 21st: lost seminar
• oct 21st-23rd: sunset on the beach screenings
• oct 23rd, nov 1st-4th: hawaiinuiakea film festival
• oct 26th: hawaii night with john cruz & keola beamer
• oct 27th: an evening with ken watanabe
• oct 28th: an evening with kevin smith
• oct 29th: hula girls (special guest: jake shimabukuro)

picture bride

if your family arrived in hawaii at the turn of the 20th century there's a good chance that your (great) grandmother may have been a picture bride. the late filmmaker kayo hatta's 1995 film won the audience award at sundance when it was released and takes a poignant look at the journey of a young girl who arrives from japan to enter into an arranged marriage to a plantation worker.

it's a good look at a time that many of us have heard stories about while growing up so add it to your netflix queue and immerse yourself in a little local history.

add a little bumatai on boy's day

if you're from hawaii and have been online for awhile it is safe to say that you have received one of those you know you're from hawaii when emails. as agent smith said in the matrix, "it is inevitable." and if you are a guy who grew up in the islands in the 80's i'll wager that you can slam down more than a few lines from the andy bumatai specials that aired on kgmb.

find out if your memory served you well and pick up a copy of andy bumatai's all in the 'ohana dvd. step back in time and savor that long awaited reunion with honey girl, junior boy, tutu and linda coble (the recipient of one of my other half's favorite lines).

in the immortal words of thomas magnum: trust me

if you lived on oahu in the 80's i guarantee either you or someone you know has a story about a chance encounter with the production of magnum p.i. when i was a kid i remember seeing magnum's ferrari at the corner store in hawaii kai and meeting one of magnum's enemies (who was also an acquaintence of my mom) while shopping at the ala moana liberty house.

not only does shirts & ladders' tom selleck tee bring back all those oh-so-fond memories from the 80's but it's also the perfect thing to wear during your magnum marathon.